Never saw this coming
by lonie b
Summary: AU At the time it didn't seem like a big deal to go to that bar in sin city. never did I think that all my secrets and thoughts were going to be revealed to a bunch of people that I don't know. T because you never know. I don't own either series.
1. Chapter 1

It all started like this: there I was sitting at the poker table in some casino in Vegas. I was winning big time thanks to the Stoll brothers. Oh, come to think of it I should introduce myself. My name is Percy Jackson and I'm from the Big Apple, that's New York City for those of you who don't know. I'm 21 years old and turning 22 in a few months. Perhaps the biggest thing you should know about me is that my father is Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea. Yes, they do still exist and I'm a demigod. But back to the story. I had been playing for a few hours and managed to accumulate a good amount of winnings. When i finally went to cash all my chips in there turned out to be about half a million there, much to my surprise. The Stolls really do know their tricks to winning.

On my way out of the casino I saw a few of the guys that I had defeated in poker fallowing me to my piece of crap little car that I love. Knowing the human nature so well I knew that they were going to try taking the money that I had won because they're egotistical and think the I don't deserve the won. Not hard to see why Artemis hates men. Any ways on the way there they cornered me like I expected and tried to get me to hand over the winnings. Key word: tried. They now have a few broken bones each. After I got back to my hotel I changed from my formal dress that I had to wear to get into the casino into my denim shorts and the Green Day shirt that my cousin Thalia had gotten me for my twentieth birthday. Grabbed a few of the hundreds I had won and went back out to hit the bars and clubs.

I know that a life of partying is not the best life to lead but after I had a terrible breakup a few months ago I felt like I deserved to let loose for a while. Going into the first bar I saw that looked fun I was ready to get stupid drunk. Back at the bar I notice a few guys my age, maybe a little older, hanging out. One of them though looked like he was not having fun at all. To me right then it looked like the others were trying to cheer him up. That is where all this nonsense began. If I had known that at the time though I wouldn't have drank so much or with him I might add.

Sitting down next to the guy that looked down I called for Captain Morgan, my favorite. The not so fun guy was slowly sipping his drink and I noticed a ring in his hand that he kept fiddling with. His friends all kept trying to get him out on the dance floor with a good looking woman but he kept refusing. At that point it wasn't hard to tell why he was there with his friends. His girl left him and they thought to bring him here to help him get over it. My friends did the same thing for me. That was when one of his friends noticed me.

"Hey hottie," he said to me and his words were a bit slurred from the alcohol, "you want to help cheer my friend here up?" As he asks he plopped a hand on the shoulder of the guy next to me. He just shrugged the hand off and continued with his drink.

"I don't really think he wants to be cheered up right now if him fiddling with that ring is anything to go by." I replied and just then my drink came and I picked it up and took a sip, perfect. "Plus, I'm busy trying to cheer myself up. So if you could leave me alone that would be great." He turned away with his hands held up in surrender. I gazed across the dance floor not really looking at anything.

"Thanks for not taking him up on his offer." A voice said next to me and I turned to see the guy I sat next to looking at me.

"No prob. I had to deal with the same thing a few months ago." I smiled at him and he gave a slight smile back. "So wife or fiancé?" I asked pointing to the ring. He looked down at it and sighed.

"Fiancé." He looked so sad and dejected. "We went to school together and I thought that she really cared for me like I her but apparently not anymore. She told me she didn't feel the way she used to."

"That sucks but at least she didn't cheat on you." He looked at me quizzically. "I walked in on my boyfriend going at it with someone else." I saw him flinch.

"Yeah. Glad that didn't happen to me." It was then that I noticed he had a British accent. It was hard to see what he really looked like with all the flashing lights but I could see that he has round glasses and black messy hair and a thin face. On his forehead I saw what looked to be a scar that was lightening shaped but I could be wrong. "So I guess that's what you meant when you said you were cheering yourself up." I nodded.

"Have been for a few months now. I'm Percy by the way. Percy Jackson." I held my hand out and he took it.

"My name's Harry. Harry Potter." We started talking about some random things as we drank a few more drinks. Then we went out onto the dance floor, more like dragged by his friends, and we had some fun. A few more drinks latter and I had no idea what I was doing. When morning came I woke up in my hotel room with a note on my pillow and the ring Harry had last night on my left ring finger.


	2. Chapter 2

**News flash. Both of the Wesley twins are still alive as well as Sirius and Remus because they are my favoritest peoples from the Harry Potter books and I don't want them to be dead.**

Ginny had broken off our engagement and I was in shock. It wasn't until we got to the pub in that American city, Los Vegas I believe I it really hit me. I wasn't getting married anymore and I no longer had a girlfriend either. Ron, Fred, George, and surprisingly Draco all brought me here to the USA in the middle of a desert to try and cheer me up. They kept trying to get me to talk with some of the women there and to go and dance with them but I ignored them and continued to drink my scotch. After about a half hour of us being there a woman came up to the bar next to me and sat down calling for a Captain Morgan whoever he is. It wasn't long after that when Draco noticed her. It didn't surprise me when he asked her if she wanted to help cheer me up. What did surprise me was her answer.

"I don't think he wants cheering up right now if him fiddling with that ring is anything to go by. Plus, I'm busy trying to cheer myself up. So if you could leave me alone that would be great." She told him and he backed off and went back to messing around with someone else. I looked over to the girl who he had been talking too and she was staring out at the dance floor with a drink in her hand. She really did look beautiful and she wasn't even trying. Her black hair came down to just past her shoulders. The shorts she was wearing showed off her legs and she also was wearing a shirt that said Green Day but an environmentalist topic doesn't really go with the picture that was on her shirt as well.

"Thanks for not taking him up on his offer." I told her and she turned and looked at me, a slight smile on her full lips.

"No prob. I had to deal with the same thing a few months ago." She said as if it was no big deal but I saw the sadness in her eyes. "Wife or fiancé?" and she pointed to Ginny's ring that I had in my hand. As much as I didn't want to talk about it I found that I also wanted her to know and I sighed.

"Fiancé. We went to school together and I thought that she really cared for me like I her but apparently not anymore. She told me she didn't feel the way she used to."

"That sucks but at least she didn't cheat on you." I looked up at her and saw a sour expression on her face. "I walked in on my boyfriend going at it with someone else." She clarified. Just the thought of someone doing that was hard to comprehend and if Ginny did that to me….I cringed at the thought.

"Yeah. Glad that didn't happen to me." She took a drink from her glass. "So I guess that's what you meant when you said you were cheering yourself up." And she nodded.

"Have been for a few months now. I'm Percy by the way. Percy Jackson." Percy held out her hand and I shook it.

"My name's Harry. Harry Potter."

We talked for a while and had a few more drinks, she had more than I did to drink, when we got dragged onto the dance floor by my friends and after that a few more drinks and I lost tract of things after that. Somehow when morning came I could remember most of went down last night but it was still fuzzy and at first I thought it was all just a dream. Then I looked over and saw the girl I was talking with the night before lying next to my in a hotel room that wasn't mine and the ring I gave to Ginny one her hand. Panicked I wrote her a quick note gathered up what few things I had and left for my hotel where I can hopefully find my friends and ask them if what happened last night actually happened and is not just my mind playing tricks on me. It was about 7:00am when I got back to where my friends and I were staying and found our rooms and knocked on the door. Fred was the one to open it.

"Hey you're alive. I thought we'd never see you again." He said as I entered. The others were also awake and ready for the day. "So how's your new wife?" and I groaned.

"That really happened didn't it? I'm really married." I mumbled. "What am I going to do?"

"Talk to her while you're both somber. Tell her it was a mistake and it will all be good." Ron suggested.

"Or you could just erase her memory of last night and it will be like it never happened." Draco put in. "She is just a muggle."

"Yeah but she was a hot muggle." George said.

"You could also tell her you're a wizard. Then she'll think you're crazy and won't want anything to do with you." Draco added.

"I think about that later." I said as I grabbed some clean clothes from my trunk and went to take a shower. When I was done and went back in with the others Son was playing chess with Fred. It was a pretty even match. A few minutes later there was a knock at the door and I answered it. Standing there in her shorts and a light blue tank top was my new wife. She looked a little nervous and I couldn't really blame her. Waking up married to someone you just met would do that to anyone.

"Hey. I found your note." She said.

"Hi. Would you like to come in?" I stepped aside so she could come in but she shook her head.

"No I was thinking that we could go out for breakfast so we could talk about…you know." Percy held up her left hand and gestured to her new ring giving me a sheepish grin.

"Uh, yeah sure. Come wait in here while I grab shoes." She came in this time and I closed the door behind her. As soon as she saw the others she paused.

"OMG. Your chess pieces move on their own? That is so cool." They all jumped when they heard her say that. The looks on their faces were hilarious. "It would be even cooler if I actually liked chess."

"Um, hello to you too I guess." Ron greeted her a bit unsure of what to do. The twins and Draco were just as confused. "Uh, I don't really think we were properly introduced last night. I'm Ron."

"This is Gred." Fred said pointing to his twin.

"And this is Forge." George pointing to Fred.

"We're Ron's older brothers." They said together. We all rolled our eyes at the two of them. Percy just giggled.

"My name's Malfoy. Draco Malfoy." Draco introduced himself with his usual pride.

"Dragon." We all looked at her surprised.

"What?" I asked.

"It's Latin. Draco means dragon in Latin." She explained.

"You know Latin?" Malfoy asked in disbelief.

"Tiny bit." Here she made the hand gesture to show the amount.

"So, Percy, breakfast you said." I asked her as I pulled on my shoes.

"Oh yeah. Do you guys want to come too?" She asked them. "It's on me."

"Sure, where are we going?" Ron asked.

"Village Inn. Their blueberry waffles are amazing."

"Sounds great, Perce."


	3. Chapter 3

Percy wasn't kidding about the waffles. She got two plates for herself along with a large plate of scrambled eggs and bacon and orange juice. Where she put it all, I have no idea. The rest of us didn't get quite that much except for maybe Ron. At first we just talked about a few random stuff like where we're from and family but we didn't mention us being wizards. Even with all the food she got Percy was still done eating before the rest of us. Eventually we got around to the topic we had both been dreading: our sudden marriage.

"So what are we going to do about this?" Percy asked gesturing to the ring on her finger.

"I don't really know." I told her.

"Are you so opposed to marriage that you can't refer to it for what it is?" Draco asked.

"I'm not really opposed to it but we barely know each other and we were both really drunk. Marriage is an agreement between two people to help support the other and love them. See the conflict?" she explained. "I mean we could try and make this work but knowing so little about each other could also bring up a lot of conflict between us and possible even ruin any chance that me might have had. But relationships are gambles. If you're not a gambling man then you'll be alone for the rest of your life or be stuck with something you don't want because you went with a safe bet. It's the risky ones that are the worthwhile ones unless you lose."

"So you're a gambler?" I asked and it does seem like she does take a lot of risks.

"Learned from some of the best poker players you will ever have the misfortune to meet." The pride in her voice was unmistakable unless there was just too much sarcasm it the statement that I missed it.

"Why would we be misfortunate to meet them?" Fred asked interested.

"Because they're also thieves and pranksters. But they're a lot of fun if you're not playing poker with them."

"Until they steal something from you or you get pranked." Draco mumbled.

"That why we always keep an eye on all of our valuables. And it's no big deal to get pranked because then we can go and get revenge on them. Prank wars are a lot of fun. Especially between family members."

"I agree." The twins said together. "What pranks have they pulled?"

"I think the funniest one was when they put chocolate Easter bunnies on the grass roof of cabin four at summer camp years ago. They also did a really funny one to the kids in cabin ten and their revenge was hilarious. The Stoll brothers looked ridiculous for weeks." There was a dreamy smile on her face as she thought of the past. "I miss those days."

"Have you ever pulled any pranks?" Ron asked fearing the answer. The smile she gave him sent a shiver down my spine and that was answer enough. Fred and George got a mischievous look in their eyes and I changed the topic before any trouble could ensue.

"So how is your family going to react to you suddenly marrying a complete stranger?" I asked and she thought about it for a moment.

"I don't know. They pretty much know that I do the first thing that comes to mind and that I do a lot of stupid stuff so they'll most likely just roll their eyes at me and tease me 'til no end. They're annoying like that but I still love them." It amazed me that someone like her could ever be teased about something. In the short time I've known her I could tell that she was very easy going and kind and loved to laugh. There was nothing about her to tease. I could see the life and mirth in her sea green eyes and I decided right then that I would try out being married to her, if only because I had never had the much life in my eyes and I wanted it and it felt like she could give it to me. I realized that I needed someone that hadn't seen the horrors of war.

"Percy if you're up to try I would like to see if we could work." I told her and she stared at me for a few minutes without expression. I was just beginning to think she didn't want to when she finally spoke.

"If we're going to do this you're going to have to accept me for who I am. I not going to change for someone else." The seriousness in her voice had me thinking about that for a few seconds.

"We'll make it work." The shocked faces on my friends faces made that declaration were quite amusing. "You'll do the same for me right?"

"Duh, we are married." She rolled her eyes but she had a smile on her face.

"Well, now that that's all sorted all out shall we go tell the others?" my first and longest friend asked.

"We're starting with your friends and family first." Percy said and after she paid for our meals we left to go back to our hotels.

Back at our hotel and Percy at hers the others confronted me about my decision.

"You're really going to stay with that muggle?" Draco demanded.

"What's wrong with that?" George asked. It seemed both he and Fred have no problem with her, not since she mentioned pranks.

"She seems pretty cool." Fred agreed.

"You know you're going to have to tell her you're a wizard now?"

"Yes, Ron I realize that." I acknowledged his question.

"That'd be entertaining to watch." Malfoy said. "Hey honey since we decided to accept each other for who we are I should probably tell you that I'm a wizard." He said in a poor impersonation of me.

"We'll tell her for you." Fred indicated to himself and George. I could tell that they were planning something more than just telling her about the wizarding world.

"No. I'll tell her. I just have to think of a way to tell her." No clue how though.

"Well you might also want to consider what to do about tomorrow when we go back to England. Are you going to stay here with her or have her come back with us?" Draco inquired.

"I'll talk to her tomorrow before I leave."

**Should I have Snap still be alive too? Or should he just stay dead?**


	4. Chapter 4

When I got back to my hotel I figured I had better go put my poker winnings in the bank so as to avoid having people break in and take it even though I have quite a bit in my account already but now I have enough to last me about a decade. So after I went and did that and got back once again to my room I decided to finally face the fact that I am no longer Percy Jackson but now Percy Potter. Not quite the same ring to it but I should get used to it. I hope.

The next morning I heard a knock on my door and opened it to see Harry standing there. He looked a bit nervous.

"So I'm heading back to England with my friends today and I wanted to ask if you would like to come too or if you wanted to meet up someplace later on?"

"Um, how are you getting to England? I'm not too big a fan of flying."

"We'll be using a special way of traveling. So does that mean you're coming?"

"I guess. When are we leaving?"

"As soon as you're ready."

"Great. Come in so you don't have to wait out here." Before he could decline I pulled him in and closed the door. I started gathering up my thing and pulled out my suitcase and started repacking luckily it didn't take too long and I didn't have much stuff. When I was done we left the room to go get me checked out. Down in the lobby his friends were waiting for us. Soon enough we were out of there and heading out into the city.

"So how are we getting to England?" I asked because I really didn't want to get on a plane.

"You'll see." Harry said as we entered a deserted alley. They looked around to make sure there wasn't anyone watching. "I think i should tell you right now that this might make you throw up."

"What?" instead of answering he grabbed my hand and everything went dark and there was a horrible spinning sensation. When it all stopped i fell to my knees and with sheer will power alone managed not to toss my cookies. When it felt like I wasn't going to suddenly puke I managed to speak. "That was awful. What was that?"

"Apparation." Harry said from next to me and he gently helped me to my feet. "It'll get better the more times you do it."

"Meaning I'm going to have to go through that again? How'd you do that anyway?" I asked starting to feel slightly better.

"Magic. Please don't freak out." He seemed really desperate.

"Why would I freak out? I'm still too dizzy for that." I finally managed to look at my surroundings. The building we were in was old but well-kept from what I could tell. We were in an entrance hall. There was some talking coming from farther in the house. "Where are we?"

"My place. Well actually my godfather's place but I'm staying with him." He still looked worried that I was going to freak out on him. "I'll introduce you." And he started leading me down the hall.

"So where did your friends go?" I asked as the voices got louder.

"They went to their homes." We entered what appeared to be a kitchen. That was where the talking was coming from. I saw a tall man with dark hair but he wasn't what stopped me in my tracks. It was the creature he was talking to. There in front of me was a small elf thing with big floppy ears, big eyes, and a really grumpy expression. The man was tell him something and then slouched away when he was done and I still hadn't moved and inch.

"Hey, Sirius." The man looked up and Harry and a grin stretched across his face.

"Harry, glad you're back. How was your trip?" Sirius, as Harry called him, asked.

"It was different." Harry replied and the two of them hugged and it felt like the two of them were an actual rather than just godfather/son. That was when Sirius noticed me.

"And who is the lovely lady?" he asked with a smile.

"I'm Percy." I told him.

"Sirius Black." He said and we shook hands. "So I see my godson managed to find another girl. I was expecting it to take longer." He grinned and I could see that there was a trouble maker in him.

"Sirius." Harry said glaring at the man.

"So what was that thing that was here with you earlier?" I asked pointing in the direction that it went.

"Oh that was the house elf." Something seemed to occur to him then. "Harry, she's not like the Dursley's is she?"

"I'm not entirely sure. I met her just two days ago." He said and I saw him flinch a little at the mention of the Dursleys. "I'm pretty sure she not a witch though."

"Ah, so she is a muggle."

"Um, what are you talking about?" I asked because they lost me. "I don't mug people. And I am most certainly not a witch. I'm just not nice to everyone all the time."

"Oh, um, it's not like that." Harry started to reassure. "A muggle is someone who is non-magical. And a witch as in you're able to do magic. Sirius and I are wizards."

My first thought was, psychos. Then I remember the trip here and the house elf. Well if gods are real why not witches and wizards. I still wanted more of an explanation though.

"Could I perhaps get a fuller explanation?" and I got one. Merlin was one of the first wizards and the magical ability got passed on through the generations and the old families are called purebloods and the witches/wizards from muggle families are mud-bloods but it's also apparently an insult. There are also half-bloods who are has one parent who's magical and the other muggle. Makes sense. There were also a lot of things that they told me about the wizarding world that I should know but I zoned out for most of it.

"So who are the Dursleys then?" I asked when the two of them finished explaining things to me.

"They're my relatives. Not very pleasant to be around." Harry said and I could tell he didn't really want to talk about it so I didn't push.

"What about your parents? What are they like?" instantly I knew I asked a sensitive question because both men looked down at the ground.

"They're dead."

"Oh. How?"

"They were killed when I was only a year old." Silence filled the room.

"I wish I could have met them." I said to try and pull them out of their reprieve. "I'm sure they would be proud of you." I got a faint smile from my husband.

"I know they would be." Sirius said sadly. "You would have loved them, Percy. Most people did."

"So how do you know if you're a witch or wizard. I mean if you're in a wizarding family then it would be obvious but what about the 'muggle-born'." I asked to get off the topic of the dead.

"You'll get accepted into a school of magic. Most of them are located in Europe. Both me and Harry here went to Hogwarts." Sirius answered and I tried to hold back a laugh but failed.

"Hogwarts? Really? Sounds like a diseased pig." They both looked offended. "Sorry but it's a weird name."

"Well when you put it that way." Harry mumbled but I saw the smile he was trying to hide.

"Any good stories?" I asked but before they could answer there was a bright flash of light and when it died down we weren't in a building anymore.

Instead I found myself standing in a field looking at a house that looked like it was different builds stacked on top of each other. It seemed they would topple over any second. Both Harry and Sirius were on the ground, disoriented from relocating. One would think that if they can handle apparating they could handle teleporting.

"What was that?"

"Teleportation. Slightly better than Apparating, don't you think?"

"How would you know what that was?" Harry asked as he got up off the ground.

"Not the first time it's happened to me. But if you want to know it's nowhere near as bad as shadow travel."

"What?" they were both confused. Just then I saw a few redheads coming out of the house and I saw Ron and the twins among them.

"Blimey, Harry." Ron said when he got over to us. "You could of told us you were going to stop by so soon."

"Well I wasn't really planning on it."

"Hello Arthur. Molly." Sirius greeted the red haired couple. The twins were behind them. Looking at all of them I could tell that they were family.

"Good to see you again Sirius." Molly said. "But who is this?" she pointed to me.

"Oh that's Harry's wife that he picked up in America." Fred said.

"Harry, I thought you would be better than to go and get someone else this soon. Do you even know the girl?" She scolded him and I gave I little chuckle at his flustered face.

"Really? An American? Oh jolly good. Tell me what are…." Arthur, I believe, started to ask but was interrupted.

"Oh not now Arthur. The girl just got here." The woman told him. "Come on inside dears." She ushered us toward the house. Before we could get very far there was another flash of light and more people appeared on the ground. There were a few more red heads that looked a lot like the ones already here. Draco was there and a few others. The ones that really surprised me were two really fat guys, what they were, and a thin blonde woman. Going off of the new arrivals attire I would say that the majority of them were of the wizarding world because most normal people wouldn't were clothing like that. The other three were a bit more normal.

"Remus old man." Sirius said as he helped one of them to his feet. "Good to see you."

After everyone seemed to get their bearings a few brief greetings were made until they were interrupted.

"What the bloody hell is going on here? Why have you brought us here?" The really fat old guy shouted.

" how good to see you again." Arthur said stepping forward to greet him but he wouldn't have any of it.

"No. We have made it quite clear we want nothing to do with this nonsense. So why have you brought us here?"

"I'm guessing these are the relatives you were talking about." I whispered to Harry and he nodded if affirmation.

"None of us brought you here." Sirius told them. "I don't even know why the rest of us were brought here."

"Oooo, a mystery. I love it." I said and the Dursleys noticed me and how close to Harry I was standing.

"And who are you girl? Another freak friend of Harry's?" the younger fat guy said.

"I am not a freak. I'm a psycho. Big difference. Plus I'm his wife not a friend."

"You're not really a psycho are you?" Harry asked worry in his voice.

"It could be debated but that's beside the point."

"I demand that you send us back at once." said. There was a small flash of light above us that no one else appeared to notice and a slip of paper fluttered down as he spoke. I grabbed it when it was near enough.

"I don't think that will be possible any time soon." I announced after I read what the note said.


	5. The Boy Who Lived

"Percy what do you mean?" Harry asked turning to me. "And what is that?"

"It's a piece of paper." I told him and he took it carefully like it was going to explode.

"But where did it come from?"

"It fell from the sky." They all looked at me like I fell from the sky. "What? It did."

"What does it say?" Sirius asked.

"I don't know. It's not in English. The characters look more like the ancient runes we learned about in school." he handed the paper off to Ron so he could see it. The twins looked at it over his shoulder.

"Why would someone write a note in ancient runes?" Ron asked as he passed the not to his parents. As they were discussing the note I noticed a man that was wearing black glaring at Mrs. Dursley.

"Percy, can you read what this says?" Harry asked as he handed it back to me. "You said that it would be difficult to send my _family_ back to their place." I could tell he wanted to use a different word rather than 'family'. "I can only assume you said that because of something on the card but none of us really know how to read runes all that well."

"Yes I can read it because they aren't runes. It's Alexandrian Greek." I told him as I took the paper back. "Dear Mortals and Percy J.," I began to read but was interrupted.

"Mortals?" Draco asked slightly offended. "What is that supposed to mean? And why did it mention you by name?" I just ignored him and continued reading.

"We have gathered you all here together because of a union between two world. No explanation any of you could come up with could really fully tell everything the other needs to know. So we have sent a true and full account of the lives of the heroes of both worlds. There will be no killing each other during the reading of these records. You will not be able to leave the immediate area until all are read. Others will be sent to join you later. Sincerely, the Three Sisters."

"What records?" someone asked, I didn't see who it was. I shrugged and noticed the position of the sun in the sky.

"I'm sure we'll find out soon, but until then what's for lunch? I'm starving."

About an hour later we were all sitting around tables next to Mrs. Weasley garden and I had been introduced to most everyone there. There was Arthur and Molly Weasley and their sons Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred and George, and Ron and their daughter Ginny, who, from the way Harry avoided her, must have been his Ex-. Draco I already knew as well as Sirius. Nobody cared about the Dursleys. Also in attendance were two former professors at Hogwarts: Remus Lupin and Severus Snape. I got to meet Ron's wife Hermione too. Those who weren't there when I read the note were filled in but these 'records' still haven't shown up.

"So let me get this straight. You can read Greek and you know Latin too?" Draco asked me perplexed.

"Yeah. My Dad's Greek so that's how I know that language and I kind of picked up some Latin as well."

"You're taking all this information about wizards very calmly, Mrs. Potter." Snape said from down the table. "Might I ask why?"

"I'm from New York. Magic isn't the weirdest thing I've ever seen. Even though I'm still trying to comprehend all of this." In a flash of light a book about an inch thick fell onto the table. The cover was black and there was nothing indicating what it was called. "Must be the record the note talked about." Ginny grabbed the book since it was closest to her. She flipped it open and a note fell out. She looked at it briefly before her expression turned into a scowl and she passed the note down to me. "Here's the first of the records." I translated. "So there's going to be more than one. Joyful."

"The Sorcerer's Stone." Ginny said. And we all looked at her. "That's the title. Shall I read first?" all of us nodded and she flipped to the first page. "**The Boy Who Lived.**"

"Hey, Harry," Ron said, "I think this about you."

"Lovely."

**Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.**

"And still are perfectly normal." Mr. Dursley said. I had quite forgotten they were here.

**They were the last people you'd expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they didn't hold with such nonsense.**

"Still don't." I heard Harry grumble.

**Mr. Dursley was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills.**

"What type of drills do you make?" I asked him and he seemed surprised by my interest.

"What do you mean which type? There's only one." He answered turning red.

"No you have the power ones, the cordless power ones, and then the hand drills." They all looked at me shocked. "What? I've been considering building a boat. I have to know my tools in order to do that."

"And you considered using a hand drill? That would take a lot more work." Harry told me.

"I don't trust power tools."

"Do you even know how to build a boat?" Ron asked.

"Out of wood. Now back to the story."

**He was a big, beefy man with hardly any neck, although he did have a very large mustache.**

"I mustache you a question but I'll shave it for later." They all looked at me strangely. "It's an American thing."

**Mrs. Dursley was thin and blonde and had nearly twice the usual amount of neck, which came in very useful as she spent so much time craning over garden fences, spying on the neighbors. The Dursleys had a small son called Dudley and in their opinion there was no finer boy anywhere.**

**The Dursleys had everything they wanted, but they also had a secret, and their greatest fear was that somebody would discover it. They didn't think they could bear it if anyone found out about the Potters. Mrs. Potter was Mrs. Dursley's sister, but they hadn't met for several years; in fact, Mrs. Dursley pretended she didn't have a sister,**

"Well that's rude." Molly said.

**Because her sister and her good-for-nothing husband**

"I agree with the good-for-nothing." Severus agreed.

**Were as unDursleyish as it was possible to be. The Dursleys shuddered to think what the neighbors would say if the Potters arrived in the street.**

"You really don't like your sister do you?" I asked Mrs. Dursley.

"Why would I? She's a freak just like everyone else here." She replied with venom in her voice.

"Freak is a relative term. To someone else you could be considered a freak." Before a farther argument could break out Ginny started reading again.

**The Dursleys knew that the Potters had a small son, too, but they had never even seen him. This boy was another good reason for keeping the Potters away; they didn't want Dudley mixing with a child like that.**

**When Mr. and Mrs. Dursley woke up on that dull, gray Tuesday our story starts, there was nothing about the cloudy sky outside to suggest that strange and mysterious things would soon be happening all over the country. Mr. Dursley hummed as he picked out his most boring tie for work, and Mrs. Dursley gossiped away happily as she wrested a screaming Dudley into his high chair.**

**None of them noticed a large, tawny owl flutter past the window.**

"Oblivious much?" Ron asked and Mr. Dursley started to turn red again.

**At half past eight, Mr. Dursley picked up his briefcase, pecked Mrs. Dursley,**

"You didn't tell me this was a kissing story." I shouted and everyone jumped at my sudden outburst. I saw a few people smile as Harry waved for Ginny to continue reading.

**On the cheek,**

"Oh." I said and Harry rolled his eyes.

**And tried to kiss Dudley good-bye but missed, because Dudley was now having a tantrum and throwing his cereal at the walls.**

"Ok there is something wrong with that boy. But hey at least this proves that cereal can't fix everything." I said.

"There is nothing wrong with my Dinky Duddydums." Mrs. Dursley nearly shouted at me.

"Then you're delusional."

"**Little tyke," chortled Mr. Dursley as he left the house. He got into his car and backed out of number four's drive.**

**It was on the corner of the street that he noticed the first sign of something peculiar – a cat reading a map. For a second, Mr. Dursley didn't realize what he had seen – then he jerked his head around again. There was a tabby cat standing on the corner of Privet Drive, but there wasn't a map in sight. What could he have been thinking of? It must have been a trick of the light.**

"You know it's incredible the lengths at which people will go to fit thigh to their version of reality." Once again I interrupted.

"Do you think you can go five minutes without interrupting?" Ginny asked slightly irritated.

"No."

"Try."

**Mr. Dursley,**

"I just thought of something that would be really funny." Ginny almost growled as I interrupted not even two full words later. "We could have Mr. Dursley read the rest of this chapter."

"How would that be funny?" Draco asked.

"Because then he would be talking in the Third Person." I saw Hermione face palm. "I thought it would be funny."

**Blinked and stared at the cat. It stared back.**

"Staring contest with a cat. That's great." One of the twins said.

"I think your uncle might be losing it Harry." The other one added. There were quite a few laughs and the said uncle turned red.

**As Mr. Dursley drove around the corner and up the road, he watched the cat in his mirror. It was now reading the sign that said Privet Drive – no, looking at the sign; cats couldn't read maps or signs. Mr. Dursley gave himself a little shake and put the cat out of his mind. As he drove toward town he thought of nothing except a large order of drills he was hoping to get that day.**

**But on the edge of town, drills were driven out of his mind by something else. As he sat in the usual morning traffic jam, he couldn't help noticing that there seemed to be a lot of strangely dressed people about. People in cloaks.**

"Creepy." The twin and myself said at the same time and the three of us looked at each other for a second before descending into laughter.

**Mr. Dursley couldn't bear people who dressed in funny clothes,**

"That explains the boring tie."

"Percy Potter, can you please stop interrupting?" the youngest Weasley ground out.

"Mmm, never tried, before."

"Well try right now. Before I hex you."

**The getups you saw on young people! He supposed this was some stupid new fashion. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and his eyes fell on a huddle of these weirdos standing quite close by. They were whispering excitedly together. Mr. Dursley was enraged to see that a couple of them weren't young at all; why, that man had to be older than he was, and wearing an emerald-green cloak! The nerve of him! But then it struck Mr. Dursley that this was probably some silly stunt – these people were obviously collecting… yes that would be it. The traffic moved on and few minutes later, Mr. Dursley arrived in the Grunnings parking lot, his mind back on drills.**

"Someone's a bit obsessed." Sirius mumbled.

**Mr. Dursley always sat with his back to the windows in his office on the ninth floor. If he hadn't, he might have found it harder to concentrate on drills that morning. He didn't see the owls swooping past in broad daylight, though people down in the street did; they pointed and gazed open-mouthed as owl after owl sped overhead. Most of them had never seen an owl even at nighttime. Mr. Dursley, however, had a perfectly normal, owl-free morning. He yelled at five different people. He made several important telephone calls and shouted a bit more. He was in a very good mood until lunchtime, when he thought he'd stretch his legs and walk across the road to buy himself a bun from the bakery.**

**He'd forgotten all about the people in cloaks until he passed a group of them next to the baker's. He eyed them angrily as he passed. He didn't know why, but they made him uneasy. This bunch were whispering excitedly, too, and he couldn't see a single collecting tin. It was on his way back past them, clutching a large doughnut in a bag, that he caught a few words of what they were saying.**

"**The Potters, that's right, that's what I heard –"**

"**- yes, their son, Harry –"**

"Hey, that's you sweetie." I interrupted again just to make Ginny mad.

"If you keep interrupting it will take us longer to get through this." My bait worked.

"Well it's not my fault this is boring."

**Mr. Dursley stopped dead.**

"Finally." Sirius shouted. I creaked up at the angry red that Mr. Dursley turned. I wasn't the only one. The twins, Ron, Hermione, and a few others joined. Snape just gave a slight smile but I don't think anyone else really noticed it.

**Fear flooded him. He looked back at the whisperers as if he wanted to say something to them, but thought better of it.**

**He dashed,**

"I wouldn't have guessed he could do anything more than waddle." I whispered in my husband's ear and he gave a soft chuckle.

**Back across the road, hurried up to his office, snapped at his secretary not to disturb him, seized his telephone, and had almost finished dialing his home number when he changed his mind. He put the receiver back down and stroked his mustache, thinking…no, he was being stupid. Potter wasn't such an unusual name. He was sure there were lots of people called Potter who had a son called Harry. Come to think of it, he wasn't even sure his nephew was called Harry.**

"You didn't even know your own nephew's name?" Molly demanded and I saw the Dursleys shrink back in fear.

**He'd never even seen the boy. It might have been Harvey. Or Harold.**

"Never. Lily loved the name Harry." Severus said and most of the people here were surprise when he said it.

**There was no point in worrying Mrs. Dursley; she always got so upset at any mention of her sister. He didn't blame her – if he'd had a sister like that…but all the same, those people in cloaks…**

**He found it a lot harder to concentrate on drills that afternoon and when he left the building at five o'clock, he was still so worried that he walked straight into someone just outside the door.**

"**Sorry," he grunted,**

"Wait, you actually know that word, Uncle?" Harry asked in pure shock. Mr. Dursley grumbled something I could quite catch.

**As the tiny old man stumbled and almost fell. It was a few seconds before Mr. Dursley realized that the man was wearing a violet cloak. He didn't seem at all upset at being almost knocked to the ground. On the contrary, his face split into a wide smile and he said in a squeaky voice that made passerby stare, "Don't be sorry, my dear sir, for nothing could upset me today! Rejoice, for You-Know-Who has gone at last! Even Muggles like yourself should be celebrating, this happy, happy day!"**

**And the old man hugged Mr. Dursley around the middle and walked off.**

**Mr. Dursley stood rooted to the spot. He had been hugged by a complete stranger.**

"I wish I could have random people giving me hugs." I said.

**He had also been called a Muggle, whatever that was. He was rattled. He hurried to his car and set off for home, hoping he was imagining things, which he had never hoped before, because he didn't approve of imagination.**

**As he pulled into the driveway of number four, the first thing he saw – and it didn't improve his mood – was the tabby he'd spotted that morning. It was now sitting on his garden wall. He was sure it was the same one; it had the same markings around its eyes.**

"**Shoo!" said Mr. Dursley loudly.**

**The cat didn't move. It just gave him a stern look.**

"I'm liking this cat." Some of the older wizards chuckled a bit when I said this.

**Was this normal cat behavior?**

"No." several people said and Mr. Dursley harrumphed.

**Trying to pull himself together,**

"Key word; trying." I missed who said this.

**He let himself into the house. He was determined not to mention anything to his wife.**

**Mrs. Dursley had had a nice, normal day. She told him over dinner all about Mrs. Next Door's problems with her daughter and how Dudley had learned a new word ("Won't!"). Mr. Dursley tried to act normally. When Dudley had been put to bed, he went into the living room in time to catch the last report on the evening news:**

"**And finally, bird-watchers everywhere have reported that the nation's owls have been behaving very unusually today. Although owls normally hunt at night and are hardly ever seen in the daylight, there have been hundreds of sightings of these birds flying in every direction since sunrise. Experts are unable to explain why the owls have suddenly changed their sleeping pattern." The newscaster allowed himself a grin. "Most mysterious. And now, over to Jim McGuffin with the weather. Going to be more showers of owls tonight, Jim?"**

"**Well, Ted," said the weatherman, "I don't know about that, but it's not only the owls that have been acting oddly today. Viewers as far apart as Kent, Yorkshire, and Dundee have been phoning in to tell me that instead of the rain I promised yesterday, they've had a downpour of shooting stars! Perhaps people have been celebrating Bonfire Night early – it's not until next week, folks! But I can promise a wet night tonight."**

**Mr. Dursley sat frozen in his armchair. Shooting stars all over Britain? Owls flying by daylight? Mysterious people in cloaks all over the place? And I whisper about the Potters…**

**Mrs. Dursley came into the living room carrying two cups of tea. It was no good. He'd have to say something to her. He cleared his throat nervously. "Er – Petunia, dear – you haven't heard from your sister lately, have you?"**

**As he had expected, Mrs. Dursley looked shocked and angry. After all, they normally pretended she didn't have a sister.**

"**No," she said sharply. "Why?"**

"**Funny stuff on the news," Mr. Dursley mumbled. "Owls…shooting stars…and there a lot of funny=looking people in town today…"**

"**So?" snapped Mrs. Dursley.**

"**Well, I just thought…maybe…it was something to do with…you know…her crowd."**

**Mrs. Dursley sipped her tea through pursed lips. Mr. Dursley wondered whether he dared tell her he'd heard the name "Potter". He decided he didn't dare. Instead he said, as casually as he could, "Their son – he'd be about Dudley's age now, wouldn't he?"**

"**I suppose so," said Mrs. Dursley stiffly.**

"**What's his name again? Howard, isn't it?"**

"**Harry. Nasty, common name, if you ask me."**

"**Oh, yes," said Mr. Dursley, his heart sinking horribly. "Yes, I quite agree."**

**He didn't say another word n the subject as they went upstairs to bed. While Mrs. Dursley was in the bathroom, Mr. Dursley crept to the bedroom window and peered down into the front garden. The cat was still there. It was staring down Privet Drive as though it were waiting for something.**

**Was he imagining things?**

"Yes you are." I said having broken the silence I was in and everyone was startled out of the story.

**Could all this have to do with the Potters?**

"Again, yes."

"Percy."

"What I'm bored. What else am I going to do?"

**If it did…if it got out that they were relayed to a pair of – well, he didn't think he could bear it.**

**The Dursleys got into bed. Mrs. Dursley fell asleep quickly but Mr. Dursley lay awake, turning it over in his mind. His last, comforting thought before he fell asleep was that even if the Potters were involved, there was no reason for them to come near him and Mrs. Dursley. The Potters knew very well what he and Petunia thought about them and their kind….He couldn't see how he and Petunia could get mixed up in anything that might be going on – he yawned and turned over – it couldn't affect them….**

**How very wrong was he.**

"Only because he jinxed it." I said.

"There are no such things as jinxes!" Mr. Dursley cried.

"Tell that to the sisters that brought us all here." I grumbled.

"You know who they are?" Hermione asked.

"Know and met them, too."

"Who are they?" the other Percy in attendance asked.

"Can we get on with the story?" I asked avoiding the question, because if I'm right we will eventually be reading about my meeting with them. "You'll find out who they are soon enough." There was silence for a minute or two before Ginny started reading again.

**Mr. Dursley might have been drifting into an uneasy sleep, but the cat on the wall outside was showing no sign of sleepiness. It was sitting as still as a statue, its eyes fixed unblinkingly on the far corner of Privet Drive. It didn't so much as quiver when a car door slammed on the next street, nor when two owls swooped overhead. In fact, it was nearly midnight before the cat moved at all.**

**A man appeared on the corner the cat had been watching. Appearing so suddenly and silently you'd have thought he'd just popped out of the ground. The cat's tail twitched and its eyes narrowed.**

**Nothing like this had ever been seen on Privet Drive. He was tall, thin, and very old, judging by the silver of his hair and beard, which were both long enough to tuck into his belt. He was wearing long robes, a purple cloak that swept the ground, and high-heeled, buckled boots. His blue eyes were light, bright, and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles and his nose was very long and crooked, as though it had been broken at least twice. This man's name was Albus Dumbledore.**

**Albus Dumbledore didn't seem to realize that he had just arrived in a street where everything from his name to his boots was unwelcome. He was busy rummaging in his cloak, looking for something. But he did seem to realize he was being watched, because he looked up suddenly at the cat, which was still staring at him from across the street. For some reason, the sight of the cat seemed to amuse him. He chuckled and muttered, "I should have known."**

**He found what he was looking for in his inside pocket. It seemed to be a silver cigarette lighter. He flicked it open, held it in the air, and clicked it. The nearest street lamp went out with a little pop. He clicked it again – the next lamp flickered into darkness. Twelve times he clicked the Put-Outer, until the only lights left on the whole street were two pinpricks in the distance, which were the eyes of the cat watching him. If anyone looked out of their window now, even beady-eyed Mrs. Dursley, they wouldn't be able to see anything that was happening down on the pavement. Dumbledore slipped the Put-Outer back inside his cloak and set off down the street toward number four, where he sat down on the wall next to the cat. He didn't look at it, but after a moment he spoke to it.**

"**Fancy seeing you here, Professor McGonagall."**

**He turned to smile at the tabby, but it was gone. Instead he was smiling at a rather severe-looking woman who was wearing square glasses exactly the shape of the markings the cat had had around its eyes.**

"Hold it. She's a shape-shifter?" I cried.

"Um, Percy, you do realize that you wanted the story to be read and now you're, once again, interrupting it?" Charlie asked with a slight smirk.

"Yes. Now about the shape-shifting…"

"Some witches and wizards can register to become animagus." Sirius told me. " that's the ability to turn into and animal."

"Just one?" I asked slightly disappointed but at the same time slightly relieved.

"Yes."

"Do you think I could be able to do something that?"

"You're not a witch." Draco so helpfully informed me.

"Are you always like this?" I asked him.

"He used to be worse." Hermione told me before he could answer and he glared at her.

**She, too, was wearing a cloak, an emerald one. Her black hair was drawn into a tight bun. She looked distinctly ruffled.**

"**How did you know it was me?" she asked.**

"**My dear Professor, I've never seen a cat sit so stiffly."**

Most of the witches and wizards chucked.

"**You'd be stiff if you'd been sitting on a brick wall all day," said Professor McGonagall.**

"**All day? When you could have been celebrating? I must have passed a dozen feasts and parties on my way here."**

**Professor McGonagall sniffed angrily.**

"**Oh yes, everyone's celebrating, all right," she said impatiently. "You'd think they'd be a bit more careful, but no – even the Muggles have noticed something's been going on. It was on their news." She jerked her head back at the Dursleys' dark living room window. "I heard it. Flocks of owls…shooting stars… Well, they're not completely stupid. They were bound to notice something. Shooting stars down in Kent – I'll bet that was Dedalus Diggle. He never had much sense."**

"**You can't blame them," said Dumbledore gently. "We've had precious little to celebrate for eleven years."**

"_Eleven?_" I tried to comprehend that. "Was there a war or something?"

"Yes."

"Respect to you guys." A few of them cracked smiles but they didn't last long.

"**I know that," said Professor irritably. "But that's no reason to lose our heads. People are being downright careless, out on the streets in broad daylight, not even in Muggle clothes, swapping rumors."**

**She threw a sharp, sideways glance at Dumbledore here, as though hoping to tell her something, but he didn't, so she went on. "A fine thing it would be if, on the very day You-Know-Who seems to have disappeared at last, the Muggles found out about us all. I suppose he really has gone, Dumbledore?"**

"**It certainly seems so," said Dumbledore. "We have much to be thankful for. Would you care for a lemon drop?"**

"A what?" Ron asked confused.

"Lemon drops are a type of sour candy." I told him. "They're good but I prefer sour patch kids and war heads."

"I've never heard of those other two." Hermione said upset about something.

"They're American. I have a pack of war heads with my stuff if you want to try one later."

"Muggle candies. You must let me try one." Arthur said and I smiled at him.

"Will do but after this chapter so we don't miss anything."

"**A what?"**

"**A lemon drop. They're a kind of Muggle sweet I'm rather fond of."**

"**No, thank you," said Professor McGonagall coldly, as though she didn't think this was a moment for lemon drops. "As I say, even if You-Know-Who has gone –"**

"**My dear Professor, surely a sensible person like yourself can call him by his name? All this 'You-Know-Who' nonsense – for eleven years I have been trying to persuade people to call him by his proper name: **_**Voldemort.**_**"**

"I'm pretty sure that's not his real name." I said thoughtfully.

"How'd you know?" Remus asked. Most of the people there had expressions of shock.

"Because I don't know of any mother that would name their child '_the flight of Death_' unless the child were was an actual child of Death. But then again Death isn't known to be one to go around having children." All I got were some blank looks and some confusion.

"You speak of Death like it's an actual person." Severus said coolly.

"He's more than just a person, Sev." I said grinning evilly.

"Don't call me that."

**Professor McGonagall flinched, but Dumbledore, who was unsticking two lemon drops, seemed not to notice. "It all gets so confusing if we keep saying 'You-Know-Who'. I have never seen any reason to be frightened of saying Voldemort's name."**

"I don't see it either. Names only have power if you give it to them. Unless saying the name will summon who or whatever it is to you. Then you want to be careful with them." Again I was shot some confused and curious looks but I didn't explain. They would find out soon enough.

"**I know you haven't," said Professor McGonagall, sounding half exasperated, half admiring. "But you're different. Everyone knows you're the only one You-Know- oh, all right, **_**Voldemort**_**, was frightened of."**

"**You flatter me," said Dumbledore calmly. "Voldemort had powers I will never have."**

"**Only because you're too – well – noble to use them."**

"**It's lucky it's dark. I haven't blushed so much since Madam Pomfrey told me she liked my new earmuffs."**

There were chuckles around the table excluding Snape and the 'Muggles'**.**

**Professor McGonagall shot a sharp look at Dumbledore and said, "The owls are nothing next to the rumors that are flying around. You know what everyone's saying? About why he's disappeared? About what finally stopped him?"**

**It seemed that Professor McGonagall had reached the point she was most anxious to discuss, the real reason she had been waiting on a cold, hard wall all day, for as a cat nor as a woman had she fixed Dumbledore with such a piercing stare as she did now. It was plain that whatever "everyone" was saying, she was not going to believe it until Dumbledore told her it was true. Dumbledore, however, was choosing another lemon drop and did not answer.**

"**What they're saying," she pressed on, "is that last night Voldemort turned up in Godric's Hollow. He went to find the Potters."**

"Harry was that the night that your parents…?" I trialed off when I saw the look on his face. He seemed to be trying not to look at anyone in case he should lose it. "Oh."

"**The rumor is that Lily and James Potter are – are – that they're – **_**dead**_**."**

Silence filled the atmosphere. I could tell from looking around the table that several people were having a hard time keeping themselves together. The Dursleys on the other hand felt the need to voice their opinions.

"Serves them both right." Mrs. Dursley said. "I always knew they had it coming to them."

"What did you just say?" Sirius asked with a hard edge to his voice.

"That's what all of you deserve, getting mixed up in all this dangerous nonsense." Mr. Dursley added.

There were quite a few reaching for their wands at this point, Harry being one of them.

"Take it back. Both of you." Harry growled at the two of them.

"You can't do anything to us. You'll all end up in that wizard prison of yours." Dudley said when he noticed them reaching for the wands.

"Damn it." Sirius grumbled.

"True. They might not be able to do anything." I told them and grinned when they turned to me. "But I can and I will."

"The note said no killing." Mr. Dursley pointed out and I grinned wider.

"Yes it did. But only during the read. It never said anything for after." That was when they went pale. "Also, it said nothing about maiming." They shut up after that and the others calmed down a bit and the wands went away.

"I'm starting to like you, Percy." Draco said.

**Dumbledore bowed his head. Professor McGonagall gasped.**

"**Lily and James…I can't believe it…I didn't want to believe it…Oh, Albus…"**

**Dumbledore reached out and patted her on the shoulder. "I know…I know…" he said heavily.**

**Professor McGonagall's voice trembled as she went on. "That's not all. They're saying he tried to kill the Potter's son, Harry. But – he couldn't. He couldn't kill that little boy. No one knows why, or how, but they're saying that when he couldn't kill Harry Potter, Voldemort's power somehow broke – and that's why he's gone."**

**Dumbledore nodded glumly.**

"**It's – it's true?" faltered professor McGonagall. "After all he's done…all the people he's killed…he couldn't kill a little buy? It's just astounding…of all the things to stop him…but how in the name of heaven did Harry survive?"**

"**We can only guess," said Dumbledore. "We may never know."**

**Professor McGonagall pulled out a lace handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes beneath her spectacles. Dumbledore gave a great sniff as he took a golden watch from his pocket and examined it. It was a very odd watch. It had twelve hands but no numbers; instead, little planets were moving around the edge. It must have made sense to Dumbledore, though, because he put it back in his pocket and said, "Hagrid's late. I suppose it was he who told you I'd be here, by the way?"**

"**Yes," said Professor McGonagall. "And I don't suppose you're going to tell me why you're here, of all places?"**

"**I've come to bring Harry to his aunt and uncle. They're the only family he has left now."**

"**You don't mean – you can't mean the people who live here?" cried Professor McGonagall, jumping to her feet and pointing at number four. "Dumbledore – you can't. I've been watching them all day. You couldn't find two people who are less like us. And they've got this son – I saw him kicking his mother all the way up the street, screaming for sweets. Harry Potter come and live here!"**

"**It's the best place for him," said Dumbledore firmly. "His aunt and uncle will be able to explain everything to him when he's older. I've written them a letter."**

"How can you put in a letter how your family died and you know have to take care of your nephew?" Molly asked slightly apprehensive.

"**A letter?" repeated Professor McGonagall faintly, sitting back down on the wall. "Really, Dumbledore, you think you can explain all this in a letter? These will never understand him! He'll be famous – a legend – I wouldn't be surprised if today was known as Harry Potter day in the future,"**

"I'm glad there's not." Harry said and I chuckled a bit as did some others.

"**There will be books written about Harry,"**

"Well that one did happen." I said to no one in particular. Harry gave me a half-hearted glare and I smiled sweetly back at him.

"**Every child in our world will know his name!"**

"I got nothing for that one." I grumbled.

"**Exactly," said Dumbledore, looking very seriously over the top of his half-moon glasses. "It would be enough to turn any boy's head. Famous before he can walk and talk! Famous for something he won't even remember! Can't you see how much better off he'll be, growing up way from all that until he's ready to take it?"**

**Professor McGonagall opened her mouth, changed her mind, swallowed, and then said, "Yes – yes, you're right, of course. But how is the boy getting here, Dumbledore?" she eyed his cloak suddenly as though he might be hiding Harry underneath it.**

Several people chuckled.

"**Hagrid's bringing him."**

"**You think it – wise – to trust Hagrid with something as important as this?"**

"I'd trust Hagrid with my life." Harry said.

"Just not our secrets." Ron added. There were a few nods and chuckles of agreement.

"**I would trust Hagrid with my life," said Dumbledore.**

"**I'm not saying his heart isn't in the right," said Professor McGonagall grudgingly, "but you can't say he isn't careless. He does tend to – what was that?"**

**A low rumbling sound had broken the silence around them. It grew steadily louder as they looked up and down for some sing of a headlight;**

"Have they thought to look up?" I asked.

**It swelled to a roar as they both looked up at the sky –**

"Good call." Fred said and I smiled.

**And a huge motorcycle fell out of the air and landed on the road in front of them.**

"I miss that bike." Sirius sighed.

"Dangerous contraptions." Mr. Dursley grumbled.

"They're not that bad. I can drive one with no problem." I told him.

"You've ridden before?" Dudley asks appalled.

"Once or twice. They're really not that hard to operate."

"How old were you when you learned how to ride them?" Molly asked, the concerned mother.

"I was fifteen both times I've driven one and I didn't really learn. I just guessed at what I was doing."

"That doesn't sound very safe." Hermione said.

"It was but…"

"What would your mother say about you doing something so dangerous at such a young age?" Mrs. Dursley demanded. I really wasn't liking the Dursleys.

"Great question. It never came up." I told them after a moment of thought.

"Is there any other 'dangerous' vehicle that you would like to say you've driven?" George asked with a smirk.

"Chariots. I'm actually licensed to drive them, too." No one knew what to say to that so Ginny just continued reading.

**If the motorcycle was huge, it was nothing to the man sitting astride it. He was almost twice as tall as a normal man and at least five times as wide. He looked simply too big to be allowed, and so wild – long tangles of bushy black hair and beard hid most of his face, he had hands the size of trash can lids, and his feet in their leather boots were like baby dolphins. In his vast, muscular arms he was holding a bundle of blankets.**

"**Hagrid," said Dumbledore, sounding relieved. "At last. And where did you get that motorcycle?"**

"**Barrowed it, Professor Dumbledore, sir," said the giant, climbing carefully off the motorcycle as he spoke. "Young Sirius Black lent it to me. I've got him, sir."**

"So, the flying bike is yours?" I asked Sirius and he nodded and he also had a dreamy look on his face. "Do you still have it?"

"No. The Ministry destroyed it when I went to Azkaban."

"Azkaban?"

"Wizard prison." Harry told me.

"Oh."

"**No problems, were there?"**

"**No, sir – house was almost destroyed, but I got him out all right before the Muggles started swarmin' around. He fell asleep as we was flyin' over Bristrol."**

**Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall bent forward over the bundle of blankets. Inside, just visible, was a baby boy, fast asleep. Under a tuff of jet-black hair over his forehead they could see a curiosly shaped cut, like a bolt of lightning.**

"**Is that where –?" whispered Professor McGonagall.**

"**Yes," said Dumbledore. "He'll have that scar forever."**

"**Couldn't you do something about it, Dumbledore?"**

"**Even if I could, I wouldn't. Scars can come in handy. I have one myself above my left knee that is a perfect map of the London Underground. Well – give him here, Hagrid – we'd better get this over with."**

**Dumbledore took Harry in his arms and turned toward the Dursley's house.**

"**Could I – could I say good-bye to him, sir?" asked Hagrid. He bent his great, shaggy head over Harry and gave him what must have been a very scratchy, whiskery kiss. Then, suddenly, Hagrid let out a howl like a wounded dog.**

"I take offense to that." Sirius said dryly.

"Get over it, mutt." Remus told him with a smirk.

"Like you're one to talk, Moony."

"**Shhh!" hissed Professed McGonagall, "you'll wake the Muggles!"**

"**S-s-sorry," sobbed Hagrid, taking out a large, spotted hankerchief and burying his face in it. "But I c-c-can't stand it – Lily an' James dead – an' poor little Harry off ter live with Muggles – "**

"**Yes, yes, it's all very sad, but get a grip on yourself, Hagrid, or we'll be found," Professor McGonagall whispered, patting Hagrid gingerly on the arm as Dumbledore steeped over the low garden wall and walked to the front door. He laid Harry gently on the doorstep, took a letter out of his cloak, tucked it inside Harry's blankets, and then came back to the other two. For a full minute the three of them stood and looked at the little bundle, Hagrid's shoulders shook, Professor McGonagall blinked furiously, and the twinkling light that usually shone from Dumbledore's eyes seemed to have gone out.**

"**Well," said Dumbledore finally, "That's that. We've no business staying here. We may as well go and join the celebrations."**

"**Yeah," said Hagrid in a very muffled voice, "I'll be takin' Sirius his bike back. G'noght, Professor McGonagall – Professor Dumbledore, sir."**

**Wiping his streaming eyes on his jacket sleeve, Hagrid swung himself onto the motorcycle and kicked the engine into life; with a roar it rose into the air and off into the night.**

"**I shall see you soon, I expect, Professor McGonagall," said Dumbledore, nodding to her. Professor McGonagall blew her nose in reply.**

**Dumbledore turned and walked back down the street. On the corner he stopped and took out the silver Put-Outer. He clicked it once, and twelve balls of light sped back to their street lamps so that Privet Drive glowed suddenly orange and he could make out a tabby cat slinking around the corner at the other end of the street. He could just see the bundle of blankets on the steps of number four.**

"**Good luck, Harry," he murmured. He turned on his heel and with a swish of his cloak, he was gone.**

**A breeze ruffled the neat hedges of Privet Drive, which lay silent and tidy under the inky sky, the very last place you would expect astonishing things to happen. Harry Potter rolled over inside his blankets without waking up. One small hand closed on the letter beside him and he kept on slept on, not knowing he was special, not knowing he was famous, not knowing he would be woken in a few hours' time by Mrs. Dursley's scream as she opened the front door to put out the milk bottles, nor that he would spend the next few weeks being prodded and pinched by his cousin Dudley…. He couldn't know that at this very moment, people meeting in secret all over the country were holding up their glasses and saying in hushed voices: "To Harry Potter – the boy who lived!"**

"Well, that's the end of that chapter." Ginny announced, marking the page for the next reader.

"Everyone up clean up the table. Then we'll continue reading inside." Molly ordered and we all did what she asked. After that was all done we all gathered in the living room. It was a tight fit but we all managed. The Dursleys somehow managed to sit away from the rest of us.

Thankfully the Fates did send one of my bags with me here, and it was the bag that had my war heads in it. I grab those on my way in to sit next to Harry.

"So who what's to try one?" I asked the gathered people with a grin. Several of the Weasleys said the wanted to, they were: Mr. Weasley, Fred, George, and Ron. "Do you want to try one, Harry?" I asked him.

"I'm good for now." He said.

"Ok, your loss." I told him and opened my blue raspberry war head and popped it into my mouth and the Weasleys soon followed. Their expressions were priceless. All the others laughed at them along with me. It was a good ten minutes before anyone could speak.

"Those are awful." Ron said finally.

"They're only sour for the first minute or so." I told him, still giggling.

"That was really something." Arthur commented.

"Where do you get those?" the twins asked.

"You can find them at most supermarkets back State side." I told them and they grinned mischievously.

"You want's to read next?" Hermione asked before the twins could voice whatever they were thinking.

"I will." Harry said and he grabbed the book off of the coffee table in the middle of the room. "**The Vanishing Glass.**" He read.


End file.
